December 7, 2004: Aero Charter and Transport, Cessna T310R (N592DM) Flagstaff, AZ
Departing Phoenix at 7:14 AM, the flight arrived at Page, AZ shortly before 9:00 AM after a quick stop in Payson. For the next seven hours, the pilot waited for his return cargo which consisted of bank material (checks and documents) and blood/specimen samples from local hospitals. The return flight to Phoenix was not direct and a series of scheduled stops were to be made if weather permitted. The weather across Arizona had not been ideal, especially in Northern Arizona. A series of winter snowstorms and icing conditions had been reported in many areas. The aircraft Mark was flying was not equipped nor certified for flight into known or forecast icing.
The flight departed Page and proceeded southbound to Grand Canyon where a stop was made to pick up bank material. While at Grand Canyon, Conte determined that Payson was "iced in", but Flagstaff was still "ok" and the pilot departed southeast towards Flagstaff. Arriving in Flagstaff, the weather conditions were worse than Conte expected with clouds down to 300 feet and visibility at 1.5 miles in light snow and freezing rain. Upon landing, the plane was covered with ice and Conte requested the aircraft be deiced prior to his departure to Phoenix. It is unknown why Conte abandoned all logic and reason to resume flight into weather with known icing conditions. Maybe it was job pressure, overconfidence, or fatigue.
At 7:50 PM, the flight departed Flagstaff Airport en-route to Phoenix. A witness at the airport reported the aircraft as slow to accelerate with one or both engines sounding "very rough". The aircraft than made a shallow climbing left turn into the clouds. A few minutes after Conte departed, truck driver Bill Miller was southbound on Interstate 17 making his way to Phoenix on this dark and snowy night when he caught a glimpse of a position light and flashing red beacon crash through the top of some trees, pass in front of his truck cab's windshield and impact an embankment on the west side of the highway with a blinding explosion. Aircraft "N592DM" was down and Mark Conte was killed instantly.
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I became interested in this accident shortly after I became aware of it. For a brief period of time, Mark had worked for the air cargo company I was operating at the time in Phoenix. I found Conte to be a very personable guy and flew the airplane well. Unfortunately, we lost the cargo contract that he was hired to fly and he was laid off. Two months later, he was hired by Aero Charter and Transport.
My first visit to the crash site was a bit surreal as it was only two days after the accident. A salvage crew was loading the wreckage onto a flatbed trailer and a member of the county coroner's office was still searching for any possible human remains. The cargo the plane carried (blood/specimen samples) made the site a true bio-hazard area. Broken glass vials and residue was everywhere and I dared touch nothing for fear of contamination. I left and returned a few years later when the area was safer to document and photograph the remaining wreckage.
THE AIRCRAFT
The aircraft involved was a Cessna T310R (N592DM), S/N: 310R0681. The aircraft was manufactured by Cessna Aircraft Company in 1976 and operated by Distribution Management Corporation (dba: Aero Charter and Transport) of Albuquerque, New Mexico.
The aircraft was powered by two Continental TSIO-520-B engines rated at 310 horsepower and the airframe had accumulated 4,988 hours.
MARK STEWART CONTE (PILOT)
Mark S. Conte, age 32, was hired by Aero Charter Transport in October 2004. He was dual-qualified in the Cessna 402 and Cessna 310 aircraft.
He held a Commercial Pilot Certificate and was also licensed as an Aircraft Mechanic. His total flight time as a pilot was 1,693 hours.
This photo of Mark was taken less than four months before the accident.
THE ACCIDENT
The flight departed Flagstaff Airport at 7:50 PM enroute to Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport.
Icing conditions were prevalent at the time of departure with light snow and low visibility. Based on witness statements, the aircraft performance was compromised with a possibility of induction icing. The airplane was not equipped for, nor certified to conduct, flight into known icing conditions.
The aircraft was last seen slowly climbing into the overcast, but shortly after emerged from the clouds descending before impacting an embankment near Interstate 17.
The pilot, the sole occupant on the flight was killed in the accident.
An Arizona Department of Public Safety officer examines the wreckage of "N592DM". The accident occurred at night during inclement winter weather conditions.
CRASH SITE - SEPTEMBER 2013
The airplane struck this 50 degree angle, east-facing embankment that forms part of the highway about 50 feet from Interstate 17. The impact site is about 2 miles south of Flagstaff Airport.
A memorial cross was placed at the initial impact site by family and friends of the pilot.
A view of the initial impact site illustrates the close proximity of Interstate 17. At the time of the accident, this embankment was covered in snow.
Three impact craters can still be seen at the site. One for the fuselage and one for each of the two engines. When I visited the crash site two days after the accident, a front profile imprint of the aircraft was clearly visible.
This photograph was taken from the top of the embankment looking east. Although not stated in the accident report, I discovered that the tops of the trees on the east side of the interstate had been hit by the aircraft during the descent.
The airplane came to rest upright on the flat part of the embankment at an elevation of 6,798 feet (about 200 feet lower than the airport's elevation).
The main aircraft wreckage travelled about 91 feet from the initial impact point while additional debris was located further in the forest.
Debris located near the initial impact point was small. Consisting of aluminum fragments such as this piece.
Fragments of tinted window Plexiglas was found throughout the site.
Some fragments of airframe structure found at the site were only a few inches in length.
During my initial visit to accident site, I was very surprised that this barometric pressure altimeter was discarded at the site. Externally, there was little visible damage.
Other instruments and gauges didn't fare so well. An example, was this instrument case fragment from a manifold pressure gauge.
Portions of the pilot's Bose ANR communications headset were also located at the site. It seemed as though nothing was spared from destruction in this accident.
The telescopic boom mic from the pilot's headset was marked by the manufacturer Bose.
These fragments of wreckage had traces of white paint.
This fragment of plastic and wire is all that remains of an Automatic Direction Finder (ADF) antenna.
This piece of internal aircraft structure was not only marked with a Cessna inspection stamp, but also featured a component part number.
On my first visit to the crash there were literally hundreds of these broken medical specimen vials scattered throughout the crash site. The scattered cargo of medical specimens and blood samples made for a bio-hazard scene.
During my September 2013 visit, this was the only vial I found.
This blue zip-tie was used to secure bags of medical specimens. This one was partially melted in the post crash fire.
A painted fiberglass fragment was found at the site displaying part of the aircraft's white/brown paint scheme.
One of a cargo pilots "tools of the trade" is the flashlight. This "C" cell Maglight was recovered damaged from the scene. The pilot most likely used this to inspect the aircraft for ice prior to departure.
These broken rudder pedals give testimony to the tremendous impact forces in this accident.
This collection of small indicator lights and instrument components was found at the site. The amber indicator lenses are used to indicate a failure of an engine alternator. The "HDG" knob shows that the aircraft was equipped with a Horizontal Situation Indicator (HSI) for instrument navigation.
This instrument panel sub-panel placard was used to indicate the position of wing flaps.
This photo illustrates the location in the aircraft of the wing flap position placard and the amber indication lights.
A fragment of the aircraft's engine firewall.
A fragment of hose used for aircraft cabin ventilation.
A section of ventilation hose with an attached cabin vent outlet valve.
The accident investigation revealed that the aircraft departed with ice/snow contaminating the upper portion of the wing surfaces which induced a stall/mush condition resulting in a collision with the ground.
In this final photo, a portion of a yoke clip used to hold an instrument approach plate. A sad reminder of an instrument flight that went very bad, a life that ended too soon, and an accident that should have never happened.
IN MEMORY
Mark Stewart Conte
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